HYDERABAD: The city police on Tuesday arrested a 27-year-old man, who allegedly swindled money from as many as 150 bank accounts by obtaining one-time passwords of the users. It is learnt that he had been using online tools to reroute the messages the victims receive on their mobile phones. The accused, a mechanical engineering graduate, had reportedly cheated over 150 victims to the tune of Rs 2 crore.
The police recovered Rs 11.5 lakh in cash, 12 mobile phones and 29 SIM cards, along with other incriminating material, from the possession of the accused. The CCTV footage from the ATMs led to the arrest of the accused.
According to Commissioner of Police (CP) Anjani Kumar, the accused Mareti Srinivasa Rao used to target unemployed youth by advertising for part-time jobs and loans in vernacular newspapers. "When somebody calls him asking for a loan, he informs them that in order to process the loan, the applicant needs to show a minimum bank balance. For example, if they wanted a loan of Rs 1 lakh, they should have at least `10,000 in the bank. He then collects the copies of passbooks, ATM cards and PIN numbers from the callers via WhatsApp, and make them believe that loan application is approved," the CP said.
The Hyderabad police chief further said that the accused used to obtain SIM cards through illegal means for the purpose of committing fraud. He used to transfer money from the victim’s account to Airtel Payment Bank accounts that he created using the credentials of his victims, and later transfer this to various other bank accounts.
The police said that Srinivasa Rao was wanted for 20 cases registered across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.